There were 5 movies we really loved at this year’s Sundance. One of them was screenwriter John August’s directorial debut The Nines. GreeneStreet quickly scooped up the international rights, but we worried that the film might not get distribution in the U.S. because of its unique unconventional narrative. Well good news, Newmarket and Sony have partnered for US distribution (Newmarket will do theatrical, Sony will do home video).

“If you’ve got a challenging indie with geek appeal, they’re your distributor of choice,” August wrote in a recent blog post. The Nines is a movie which some people love fanatically, yet leaves other people scratching their heads. Newmarket has a great track record with this kind of film, and won’t try to market it as something it’s not. They’re small, and can give it the kind of steady nurturing it needs.”

Cinematical’s James Rocchi gives his early review of Black Snake Moan: “Black Snake Moan isn’t a bad film; it’s just not as well-conceived and well-structured as Hustle and Flow.”

It seems like only a year ago when This Film Is Not Yet Rated premiered at Sundance. Well this year the MPAA is trying to fix their image. For the first time in its 38-year history, the group has announced that they will make its ratings rules and regulations public. It will also describe the standards for each rating, and detail the appeal process. Yahoo reports that “[The MPAA] plans to publish the identities of its senior raters.MPAA chairman Dan Glickman and CARA chairwoman Joan Graves will discuss the planned changes over breakfast Sunday with filmmakers, producers and directors at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.